Posted September 20, 2012 Book: Help Me Pray: Learning from the Saints Author: Louise Perrotta Servant Books. Cincinnati, OH. 2012. Pp. 152 An Excerpt from the Jacket: A valuable treasury for anyone who wants to learn more about prayer, Help Me Pray offers the wisdom of the saints as inspiration. Discover saints who experienced the same weaknesses and struggles with prayer that you do. These reliable guides reveal what God can do in ordinary human beings who trust him and spend time with him in prayer. An Excerpt from the Books: Looking for a prayer partner? Picture Jesus beside you, says, St. Teresa of Avila. Imagine that this Lord himself is at your side and see how lovingly and how humbly he is reaching you --- and believe me, you should stay with so good a Friend for as long as you can before you leave him. If you become accustomed to having him at your side, and if he sees that you love him to be there and are always trying to please him, you will never be able, as we put it, to send him away, nor will he ever fail you. He will help you in all your trials and you will have him everywhere. Do you think it is a small thing to have such a Friend as that beside you? Prayer knocks at the door, fasting obtains, mercy receives. Prayer, mercy, and fasting: these three are one and they give life to each other. Fasting is the soul of prayer, mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. Let no one try to separate them, they cannot be separated. If you have only one of them or not all together, you have nothing. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others you open God's ear to yourself. --- St. Peter Chrysologus Table of Contents: 1. Everyone's invited 2. A few good habits 3. A question of attitude 4. But what do you say? 5. The book that comes alive 6. What to do with your mind 7. Struggles and snags 8. Try this 9. Prayer's best teacher 10. Pray your way through the day 11. One big prayer chain: the communion of saints 12. It's all about love Saints' Biographies